The Waterford hurlers have never done things the easy way. There was their epic disaster in the 2008 All-Ireland final, the seemingly endless list of semi-final defeats in the 2000s and that’s before we mention this decade’s series of capitulations against Kilkenny.

So in many ways, yesterday’s win was very unlike Waterford. They saw a window of opportunity and, for once, they decided to take it, capturing their second All-Ireland semi-final victory from 12 attempts over 19 years. Although, in true Waterford fashion, when they get things right, they get things wrong. Two of their best players, Conor Gleeson and Austin Gleeson, now look set to miss the final, the former having received a red card, the latter having been lucky to avoid one.